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This is a list of presidents of the House of Ariki of the Cook Islands from 1978: [1]
| Name | Entered office | Left office |
|---|---|---|
| Makea Karika Takau Margaret Ariki [2] | 1978 | 1980 |
| Pa Tepaeru Terito Ariki, Lady Davis [2] | 1980 | 1990 |
| Makea Karika Takau Margaret Ariki [2] | 1990 | 1992 |
| Pa Tepaeru Teariki Upokotini Marie Ariki [2] | 1992 | 2002 |
| Tou Travel Ariki [3] | 2002 | 2006 |
| Ada Rongomatane Ariki [2] [4] | 2006 | December 2008 |
| Tou Travel Ariki | December 2008 | Present |
The Cook Islands are named after Captain James Cook, who visited the islands in 1773 and 1777, although Spanish navigator Alvaro de Mendaña was the first European to reach the islands in 1595. The Cook Islands became aligned to the United Kingdom in 1890, largely because of the fear of British residents that France might occupy the islands as it already had Tahiti.
The politics of the Cook Islands, an associated state, takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democracy within a constitutional monarchy. The Queen of New Zealand, represented in the Cook Islands by the Queen's Representative, is the Head of State; the prime minister is the head of government and of a multi-party system. The Islands are self-governing in free association with New Zealand and are fully responsible for internal affairs. New Zealand retains some responsibility for external affairs, in consultation with the Cook Islands. In recent years, the Cook Islands have taken on more of its own external affairs; as of 2005, it has diplomatic relations in its own name with eighteen other countries. Executive power is exercised by the government, while legislative power is vested in both the government and the islands' parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislatures.
Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of 67.39 km2 (26.02 sq mi), and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 13,007 of a total population of 17,434. The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings and international airport are on Rarotonga. Rarotonga is a very popular tourist destination with many resorts, hotels and motels. The chief town, Avarua, on the north coast, is the capital of the Cook Islands.
A mataiapo or mata'iapo is a hereditary chiefly title in the Cook Islands. The head of a sub-tribe, subject to the ariki as far as the whole tribe is concerned and owing him traditional allegiance, but otherwise largely independent as head of his own family group and owning land in his own right.
The Parliament of the Cook Islands is the legislature of the Cook Islands. Originally established under New Zealand’s United Nations mandate it became the national legislature on independence in 1965.
"Te Atua Mou Ē" is the national anthem of the Cook Islands. It was adopted in 1982, replacing the previous New Zealand anthem, "God Defend New Zealand".
The Kingdom of Rarotonga, named after the island of Rarotonga, was an independent kingdom established in the present-day Cook Islands in 1858. In 1888 it became a protectorate of the United Kingdom by its own request. In 1893 the name was changed to the Cook Islands Federation.
The House of Ariki is a parliamentary body in the Cook Islands. It is composed of Cook Islands high chiefs (ariki), appointed by the Queen's Representative. There are up to twenty-four members, representing different islands of the Cooks.
An ariki, ꞌariki, aliki, ali‘i, ari'i, aiki or hakaiki, akariki or ‘eiki (Tonga) is or was a member of a hereditary chiefly or noble rank in Polynesia.
Travel Tou Ariki is a Cook Islands high chief (ariki) from Mitiaro. He is currently Kaumaiti Nui (president) of the House of Ariki.
Makea Takau Ariki (1839–1911) was a sovereign of the Cook Islands. She was the ariki (queen) of the dynasty Makea Nui, one of the three chiefdoms of the tribe Te Au O Tonga on the island of Rarotonga.
Makea Pori Ariki was a sovereign of the Cook Islands. He was the ariki of the Makea Nui dynasty, one of the three chiefdoms of the Te Au O Tonga tribe on the island of Rarotonga.
Tinomana Mereana Ariki was a sovereign of the Cook Islands. She was the ariki of the Tinomana dynasty, a chiefdom of the Puaikura tribe on the island of Rarotonga. She was the second ariki of importance and position next to Makea Takau.
Ngamaru Rongotini Ariki was a sovereign of the Cook Islands. He was the ariki of the Ngamaru dynasty on the island of Atiu, one of the chiefdoms of Ngaputoru, which consisted of three adjoining islands —Atiu, Mitiaro, and Mauke. In the 1860s he married Makea Takau, a princess of Rarotonga. In 1871 Makea Takau became ariki of Rarotonga and queen regnant of the newly established Kingdom of Rarotonga, as a consequence making Ngamaru prince consort of the realm of the united Cook Islands.
The culture of the Cook Islands reflects the traditions of its fifteen islands as a Polynesian island country, spread over 1,800,000 square kilometres (690,000 sq mi) in the South Pacific Ocean. It is in free association with New Zealand. Its traditions are based on the influences of those who settled the islands over several centuries. Polynesian people from Tahiti settled in the Cook Islands in the 6th century. The Portuguese captain, Pedro Fernandes de Queirós, made the first recorded European landing in the islands in the early 17th century, and well over a hundred years later, in the 18th century, the British navigator, Captain James Cook arrived, giving the islands their current name. Missionaries developed a written language, bringing schools and Christianity to the Cook Islands in the early 19th century. Cook Islands Māori, also known as Māori Kūki 'Āirani or Rarotongan, is the country's official language.
Mauke is an island of the Cook Islands archipelago, lying in the central-southern Pacific Ocean. Part of the Nga-pu-Toru, it is 277 km (172 mi) northeast of Rarotonga.
The Miss Cook Islands is the national beauty pageant in the Cook Islands in under Miss Cook Islands Association (MCIA). The current reigning titleholder is Tajiya Sahay who was crowned in October 2019.
Tararo Jane Ariki II was a Cook Islands chiefess and politician. An ariki of Mauke island, she was also the first woman to become a member of the islands' Legislative Council.
Dame Margaret Makea Karika Ariki, also known as Pauline Margaret Rakera Taripo, was a Cook Islands ariki and holder of the Makea Karika Ariki title from 1949 to 2017. She was President of the House of Ariki from 1978 to 1980, and again from 1990 to 1992. She also served on the Legislative Assembly from 1958 to 1961.